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At Alpinstore, we are aware that we need to change things to preserve our planet. As part of the article "Tous eco-friendly : les initiatives éco-responsables de l'équipe Alpinstore ", we asked you to speak up about the eco-responsible actions you take on a daily basis!
Today we start this section for the first time with Emeline! We let you read her article about her daily actions:
"I grew up in a A flurry of industrial productsI grew up in an environment where I was used to having cereals from all over the world in my breakfast bowl, ready-made meals defrosted for family meals, followed by yoghurts packed in plastic pots and then over-packed in a cardboard box.
At that time, we used to go to the supermarkets every day and take the car at every turn, even if it was just to go to the local bakery. The supermarkets, I remember, had plastic bag dispensers at every checkout. Everyone could help themselves, it was plastic at will! I also remember that we ate meat at every meal and we didn't even sort our waste. Everything went in the same bin! Glass bottle deposits even disappeared during my childhood. The only thing we did for the planet was to turn off the lights behind us and limit our laundry. An unconscious madness!
Today, political awareness has led to radical and important changes in our way of life, and fortunately for the planet and its future. The sorting of waste and the elimination of plastic bags have been observed over the last few years. Some people have then moved towards a vegetarian or even a vegetable diet.
The current events have allowed many of us to take the plunge and implement actions that are beneficial to the environment.
For our part, we had just moved into our new home when the lockdown was ordered. It allowed us to refocus on these issues. Some actions had already been in place for a few years, but we decided to go further. For example, during the renovation of our new living space, we decided to install dry toilets in order to reduce our consumption of drinking water and to compost this waste, which will also feed the earth. Our cats have done the same with their litter by replacing the mineral one by wood shavings, which can be integrated in the compost. We have therefore installed a compost bin at the bottom of the garden, in order to degrade our vegetable waste and to compost the vegetable garden that we have also set up. The goal of this vegetable garden would be to produce our own vegetables all year round and to be self-sufficient. In complete autonomy, since a rainwater collector was already on site. We only have to use the resources available on site.
Another big resolution was to reduce our waste even more, to eliminate all the plastic water bottles that we were using for sparkling water. This meant installing a system designed by GROHE, the Blue Home system which produces sparkling water directly from the tap, using Biogas cartridges available from rechargeco2.co.uk. But also to replace all industrial cleaning and cosmetic products with home-made recipes, made with natural basic products. We took advantage of our time during the lockdown to create a collection of simple and easy recipes to facilitate this change.
We were already making eco-responsible efforts such as using a washcloth to remove make-up, brewing tea and herbal teas in washable and reusable cloth bags, shopping with our bags, using toilet paper in very large rolls (jumbo model), using filtered tap water, using ground coffee rather than pods which also allows us to recover it afterwards for a second use in the garden or in homemade cosmetics (body scrub). For years we have chosen an eco-responsible electricity supplier, Ekwateur, which provides green energy.
Our purchases are reasoned, favoring local, seasonal and organic products. We also favour sustainable materials such as glass and metal and we prefer to buy in bulk. We buy our clothes at second-hand stores and we repair what we can, thus giving objects a second life. We walk for most of our trips and are considering the purchase of a hybrid car for our business trips. We have reduced our consumption of meat, which is too energy-consuming for the planet (see the documentary " L'expérimentation - manger autrement " produced by ARTE).
Reducing our ecological impact on the planet also means using local resources available directly from nature, which means that the products of our gathering of wild plants can be found on our plates. We have been doing this for years. We cook the vegetables from head to toe, nothing is wasted, everything is used. The cling film has been replaced by the use of recycled boxes for storing leftovers in the fridge and the sheets of greaseproof paper by a silicone tray for cooking in the oven. Plastic straws have been replaced by stainless steel straws that can be washed and reused at will. Our cats now eat eco-friendly kibbles, insect-based kibbles (Tomojo, sold on altershop.fr). We have joined a solidarity buying network (la Ruche qui dit Oui), in order to boycott hypermarkets and large distribution networks that only have the lure of profit in mind.
To conclude, I wanted to advise everyone to think about their purchases and to respond to the logic " consume less, consume better ". Everyone should be aware that every gesture counts. For gifts, think of ethical gifts like the Masterbox, encouraging French craftsmen and producers. Thank you for them and for the planet.
Emeline, a nature lover".
Thank you Emeline for your testimony, let's act together to preserve our environment.
If you also want to share the eco-friendly things you do on a daily basis, write us an e-mail at contact@alpinstore.com. You have the whole summer to tell us about your eco-responsible habits! In exchange for an article of a few lines (photos are welcome!), we'll give you a 15€ voucher, with no minimum purchase on a selection of products. (Excluding current promotions)
In addition to the voucher, we will publish the most relevant initiatives on our dedicated eco-friendly space!
